Can your first bass be your best bass?

[Greenman72]

Long story short - when I first decided to play bass, I got an Aria Pro II. It cost $300.
IGB-STD - Aria Guitars - Electric, Acoustic, Classical Guitars and Bass

(Funny back story - My son wanted a red guitar for Christmas. A customer had a red "base guitar" that he was willing to trade me. I figured a "base guitar" would be fine, because we didn't need a "premium guitar", so I got it. That's how I got exposed to "base guitar".)

I got and I enjoyed it. I learned on it for a while. Then I outgrew it and moved on to bigger and better instruments. (Currently GASing for a Yamaha BBP34, for the record.) Loaned it to a friend and forgot about it.

Then my friend returned it. So I decided to set it up and play it again.

Now, after looking at my wall of instruments, I'm not so sure that the budget, entry-level Aria Pro II Base Guitar doesn't actually have the best tone out of all my instruments, including my $1800 Ibanez Premium.

Has this ever happened to anybody else? Realized that the first one was actually the best one after all?

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

My 1st bass looked awesome, played fine, and sounded meh. It was a P copy.

 

[JRA]

Has this ever happened to anybody else? Realized that the first one was actually the best one after all?

i can imagine that, absolutely! (edit: although it was never that case with me, i.e., the basses i played kept getting better and better as i got better.*)

my experience/evolution taps into the "cheaper" part of the scenario, i.e., that i eventually realized that i didn't have to spend a lot of money to get a lot of instrument.


* better = they got more comfortable, easier to play, and generally more expensive.

 

[jimmydean]

My first 200 basses , not so much......my Dingwall.......yes !

 

[blowinblue]

My first bass weighed around 13.5 lbs. Definitely not my best. Just my heaviest.



Edit: Forgot about these pics. Not the bass I owned, but mine looked identical. 1977 Kramer 250B.

M. M.

 

[SuperTheBass]

Kind of stating the obvious, but it depends what your first bass is. Mine was an Ibanez Gio that came with a 10W practice Amp. Needless to say I got rid of it as soon as I got another option. I've heard arias are nice.

 

[Mustang Surly]

"Can your first bass be your best bass?"

You're allowed to like what you like. Guys like Ronnie Dawson and Nick Curren were killer players who were pretty notorious for playing cheap guitars. Dawson played a Squier Strat unless I'm mistaken and Curren played Harmonys, Squiers, Agiles and a string of cheap, 1960s Japanese guitars in addition to Fenders, Gretches and Gibsons.:



Danelectros have enjoyed quite a following over the years (Jimmy Page, Joey Spampinato, Randy California, etc.) and they're about as low-rent as you can get.

 

[B-Mac]

Long story short - when I first decided to play bass, I got an Aria Pro II. It cost $300.
IGB-STD - Aria Guitars - Electric, Acoustic, Classical Guitars and Bass

(Funny back story - My son wanted a red guitar for Christmas. A customer had a red "base guitar" that he was willing to trade me. I figured a "base guitar" would be fine, because we didn't need a "premium guitar", so I got it. That's how I got exposed to "base guitar".)

I got and I enjoyed it. I learned on it for a while. Then I outgrew it and moved on to bigger and better instruments. (Currently GASing for a Yamaha BBP34, for the record.) Loaned it to a friend and forgot about it.

Then my friend returned it. So I decided to set it up and play it again.

Now, after looking at my wall of instruments, I'm not so sure that the budget, entry-level Aria Pro II Base Guitar doesn't actually have the best tone out of all my instruments, including my $1800 Ibanez Premium.

Has this ever happened to anybody else? Realized that the first one was actually the best one after all?

Aria Pro II ain't hardly entry level. Might wanna research a bit.
There's definitely entry level Aria basses, but the Aria Pro II line isn't one of them.
SB-1000 - Aria Guitars - Electric, Acoustic, Classical Guitars and Bass

 

[michael_t]

My first bass was a 2008 Fender Highway One Jazz, purchased new in 2009. I still have it, and though I own seven other basses now, it's still my home sweet home.

 

[4SG]

My first bass was a 77 Precision. Some folks are down on late 70s Fenders but mine is the best sounding bass I have. I'd play it exclusively except it's really freakin' heavy. Here it is at the Pyramid Club in NYC circa 1988, and in the rehearsal room today.

 

[tb-player]

My last bass is my best bass.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Long story short - when I first decided to play bass, I got an Aria Pro II. It cost $300.
IGB-STD - Aria Guitars - Electric, Acoustic, Classical Guitars and Bass

(Funny back story - My son wanted a red guitar for Christmas. A customer had a red "base guitar" that he was willing to trade me. I figured a "base guitar" would be fine, because we didn't need a "premium guitar", so I got it. That's how I got exposed to "base guitar".)

I got and I enjoyed it. I learned on it for a while. Then I outgrew it and moved on to bigger and better instruments. (Currently GASing for a Yamaha BBP34, for the record.) Loaned it to a friend and forgot about it.

Then my friend returned it. So I decided to set it up and play it again.

Now, after looking at my wall of instruments, I'm not so sure that the budget, entry-level Aria Pro II Base Guitar doesn't actually have the best tone out of all my instruments, including my $1800 Ibanez Premium.

Has this ever happened to anybody else? Realized that the first one was actually the best one after all?

Cool story, certainly possible, but not in my case. My first bass, a department store vanity brand entry level Japanese made short scale mid 60’s instrument was definitely not my best bass by a long shot.

That said, I’m glad you stuck gold 1st time around.

 

[bikeplate]

Sure. As long as it isnt a Peavey T40

 

[MrAB4003]

It's certainly possible! My 2008 Squier Jazz Bass is the best budget bass I've ever played. It's also the best piccolo bass I've ever played.

 

[Slevage]

My first bass was a Univox Hiflyer (after renting a cheap hollow body bass for 3 months-first two months with no amp).
So for me, the answer is no.
Any of the student model stuff of the 70’s can’t touch a well set up Squier.
The Motsumoku factory claim is over rated, and over priced.

 

[Mustang Surly]

My first bass was a 77 Precision. Some folks are down on late 70s Fenders but mine is the best sounding bass I have. I'd play it exclusively except it's really freakin' heavy.

Which is why I got rid of my '70s P-bass: it was a boat anchor. That seems to be a common complaint about those '70s Fenders. Otherwise, there was nothing wrong with mine.

 

[devnulljp]

Aria Pro II ain't hardly entry level. Might wanna research a bit.
There's definitely entry level Aria basses, but the Aria Pro II line isn't one of them.
SB-1000 - Aria Guitars - Electric, Acoustic, Classical Guitars and Bass

Yeah, my first bass was an SB700.
Fantastic instrument, cost me 150 quid off the newspaper classifieds in the late 80s. It got stolen.

 

[Gervais Cote]

My first jazz bass is a Squier Affinity and I bought it because it sounded so good I couldn’t resist. I was shopping for a precision at that period of time, not a jazz.

I changed the neck because it was slightly warped and this is by far my best jazz bass even compared to others I own/owned that are more than 6 times the price.

I have been close to sell it twice telling myself it’s a cheap bass but friends of mine and my luthier told me it’s a freaking keeper so never get rid of it ! Which I did fortunately and still love it a lot.

You must know I have been trying more than 40 basses before buying this humble Squier and never been impressed as much as with it. Go figure !

 

[Clark W]

Long story short - when I first decided to play bass, I got an Aria Pro II. It cost $300.
IGB-STD - Aria Guitars - Electric, Acoustic, Classical Guitars and Bass

(Funny back story - My son wanted a red guitar for Christmas. A customer had a red "base guitar" that he was willing to trade me. I figured a "base guitar" would be fine, because we didn't need a "premium guitar", so I got it. That's how I got exposed to "base guitar".)

I got and I enjoyed it. I learned on it for a while. Then I outgrew it and moved on to bigger and better instruments. (Currently GASing for a Yamaha BBP34, for the record.) Loaned it to a friend and forgot about it.

Then my friend returned it. So I decided to set it up and play it again.

Now, after looking at my wall of instruments, I'm not so sure that the budget, entry-level Aria Pro II Base Guitar doesn't actually have the best tone out of all my instruments, including my $1800 Ibanez Premium.

Has this ever happened to anybody else? Realized that the first one was actually the best one after all?

My first bass was complete junk. Would have loved to had an Aria Pro II as a first bass.

 

[Valhala]

Still have my first bass. Black peavy T-40 I bought used in 1984. Definitely not the best bass I’ve owned or I’d still play it on a regular basis. But it is the heaviest bass I’ve ever owned.